The 2024 valedictorians for El Reno High School are Brianna Barksdale, Emma Ketter, Cooper Park and Jadzia Taylor.

These students earned this distinction by obtaining all A’s during their high school career and taking 13 Pre-AP and AP courses with an AP course in each core subject.

Grady Lesperance is the 2024 salutatorian. He took the same number of Pre-AP and AP classes and has the next highest GPA.

Brianna Barksdale is the daughter of Sheldon Henderson and Eric Barksdale. She has a sister, Olivia.

El Reno City Council voted to condemn an “inoperable” car wash on Sunset Drive and also to purchase three properties on South Choctaw. The problem is, some of the Choctaw owners apparently don’t want to sell.

That led to the council voting to support taking the properties by eminent domain if negotiations to purchase fall through.

Council voted 5-0 at its Tuesday night meeting to declare the car wash at 1408 Sunset Drive dilapidated and authorize it to be brought down on or after June 25.

Redlands Community College recently celebrated the graduation of more than 250 students during its spring commencement ceremony that included a keynote address from college alumni Christian Wassana, actor and founder of the I am, I can, I will movement. 

El Reno’s VFW Post 382 is struggling. And longtime supporters of the local Veterans of Foreign Wars Post are hoping to enlist the public to help right the ship.

Nancy Salsman has been associated with VFW Post 382 since she was a youngster.

Salsman said the VFW Post has had its sales tax and mixed beverage licenses pulled by the state. The post cannot operate its lounge without the permits and this cuts deep into the budget, she said. The VFW owes the Oklahoma Tax Commission for the unpaid taxes.